Dr Lasermed is a grumpy gynecologist who comments about her practice, the state of medicine, women's health care and her triplet children.

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These are the thoughts of a cantankerous ol' gynecologist who remembers when things were a little different. I try to find a little humor in my life and the people I meet along the way. Come meet the characters in my world.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Women’s Health Care Coverage

The debate has started again about what services should and should not be covered by health insurance.Religious organizations feel that they should be able to not cover birth control.If they don’t believe in it as a religious policy, they should not pay for it as part of their insurance policy.

I thought we had finally finished fighting this battle. Sigh.Here we go again.I have had to deal with insurance companies (and parents sometimes) about this for years.People – this is not the 1950s.

1.The choice of whether or not to have children belongs with the woman who is having the children.It does not belong with anyone else.As a physician, I can only assist in this decision.

2.The choice of birth control method also belongs with a woman.Her partner may or may not be involved in this decision.My job is to educate her and assist in this decision.

3.Birth control is not always used to prevent pregnancy.We use birth control pills to control bleeding, keep cycles regular, assist with acne control, aid in controlling cramps, help control endometriosis, and many other things.We use IUDs, patches and other birth control methods for some of the same issues.Some of the women using these methods aren’t even sexually active.If the insurance company decides not to cover “birth control”, they won’t cover the medications for any other reason.

4.Many of the “covered lives” (shudder at that term) may not be of the same faith as the organization that they work for.Should they have to live by the same rules?

It is interesting to me that most of the people who are making these arguments are not the ones who are going to have to raise the babies.Once the babies are born, they aren’t going to have the responsibility for them forever.It’s only in the abstract that they talk about “the pregnancy”.

Let’s give them 5 babies, minimum wage, no welfare, no medical assistance, etc, and see how they do!

2 comments:

Totally agree. I love to hear the old-guy politicians pontificate on this. They insist on conflatingabortion with birth control, know nothing about Planned Parenthood services, and "love the fetus, hate the child." Maddening.

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The band my kids march in

Characters

I'm Dr. Lasermed. I'm a Gynecologist (that's a doctor that takes care of women and women's problems). I've been in private practice for over a quarter of a century.Mr. Lasermed - a paramedic in his former life, married me without fully realizing how crazy it is to have a physician for a spouseThe Lasermed children (triplet boys):Mr. Impatient - sweet, lovable and impatient. Autistic and very bright. He loves sports (all kinds). He is also very routine oriented.Three Speed- originally two speed - slow and stop. However, has ADD, so third speed is "....look, there's a bunny". Very bright when we can get him to focus. Plays trumpet.Tall Guy- First one to be taller than Mom - calls me "short woman" - probably the smartest of the three - definitely the most sarcastic. Plays the baritone (and alto) saxophone.Princess – my faithful and kind receptionist who puts up with me when I’m cranky and puts up with my patients who are crazy. She has two wonderful boys and a boyfriend and Mom who may or may not appear in the blog.Yearbook Gal – Tall Guy’s girlfriend and photographer for the yearbook.Computer Geek - formerly had a name, now changed at his request because he wanted a nickname, too. He helps me out when I get stuck with the computer issues.

About Me

I am a Gynecologist (a doctor who cares for women and women's problems). I went to medical school in the south, residency in the frozen north (with a small side trip to Canada), then moved to a "medically underserved area" I have endured riots, hurricaines, tornados, floods and triplets.
My triplet boys are about finished with high school. Two of them are in the marching band. See the photo. I am very proud of them.
I also write as Dr. Maryellen Smith on associatedcontent.com Follow me on twitter @ lasermed1
I appreciate feedback.

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I would like to state for the record that any and all mistakes are those of the blogger. I am in my mid-50s. When I was first introduced to computers, I actually punched cards. I never figured out how to write in all those funny languages. I have recently tried to post pictures with my articles. Nope. I forget to put tags on posts. Sorry. Be patient with me. I will eventually get it. I am trainable.

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Disclaimer

*****This blog is not intended to give medical advice. You should always check with your doctor. Note I did not say "provider". You should read the blog to see why.

Any resemblance of characters to people you think you might know, living or dead, is totally coincidental. Really. Unless I asked them if I could use the story. Even then, details have been changed to protect somebody.

I can't ask about places. Soooooo..... Any resemblance of places to someplace you think you know is absolutely coincidental.